Virat Kohli once again showed his class and pedigree with the bat as he led India to a comfortable seven-wicket victory over South Africa in the second T20I at PCA Stadium in Mohali on Wednesday (September 18).
Coming into bat in the 4th over while chasing 150, Kohli added 61 runs for the second wicket with Shikhar Dhawan (40) before sharing an unbeaten 47-run stand for the fourth wicket with Shreyas Iyer (16) to guide India home.
The Indian captain finished with 72 not out off 52 balls (4 fours and 3 sixes) as the hosts overhauled the target with six balls to spare.
After the match, Royal Challenger Bangalore’s newly-appointed head coach Simon Katich heaped praise on Kohli, saying the record of the batsman speaks for him.
“His (Kohli) records speak for him. I have a huge amount of respect for what he has achieved not only as a player but also as the captain of India,” Katich told IANS.
“What I really like about him is the fact that he is super competitive, because that’s exactly what I am like and I love that,” he added.
Katich also recalled the century which Virat scored at Perth in the second Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in December 2018. He said that that innings by the Indian skipper was one of the best Test tons he has ever seen.
“I had the pleasure of watching him score a hundred at Perth last year in the Test series at what was like an old WACA wicket. It was one of the best Test hundreds I have seen,” opined Katich, who will work closely with Kohli at RCB.
With his Mohali masterclass, Virat Kohli also took his T20I average to 50 (precisely 50.85 from 66 innings) and once again became the only batsman in world cricket to boast an average of 50+ across formats.
Seeing his batting heroics, Mike Hesson, who has been named as RCB’s Director of Cricket Operations, also couldn’t stop gushing over Kohli.
“He is as good as they get in world cricket. Last night, we saw another example of what an amazing player he is. He is a fine leader who leads with real spirit and passion,” Hesson told IANS.
